1. The quick list
2. Best portable
3. Best all-rounder
4. Best outdoor
5. Best desktop
6. Best for power
7. Best mini Marshall
8. Best premium
9. Best entry level
10. Best for stacking
11. Buying advice
When it comes to recognisable logos in the world of rock and metal, Marshall's signature is up there with the Metallica, Kiss, AC/DC and Def Leppard logos. That's because Marshall's distinctive name has adorned the stages of some of the biggest names in rock'n'roll for decades. But while the iconic script is perhaps best known on the front on amps, the audio firm also produce some of the best speakers on the market, so we've picked out a selection of the best Marshall speakers currently available right now.
The Marshall range covers everything from all-in-one sound systems to portable players, so we're pretty confident you'll find something to love from the many speakers available.
Steve is a home entertainment technology specialist who contributes to a variety of UK websites and mags, including Louder, Yahoo UK, Trusted Reviews, T3, The Luxe Review and Home Cinema Choice. Steve began his career as a music journo, writing for legendary rock weekly Sounds, under the nom de plume Steve Keaton. His coverage of post-punk music was cited in the 2015 British Library exhibition Terror and Wonder: The Gothic Imagination, as a seminal influence on the Goth music scene.
The quick list
The original Emberton became Marshall's best-selling speaker - and the mark II model only adds to its reputation. Battery life is up to 30 hours from the original's 20, while the addition of a sub-woofer packs a meaty audio punch for a small speaker. A seriously great wee portable.
The Marshall Stanmore II is a neat option if you're looking for an indoor Bluetooth speaker that covers all the bases when it comes to audio delivery, size and looks. The music fairly rocks out of this unit thanks to a 50W woofer and double 15W tweeters. A punchy speaker that comes highly recommended.
If an outdoor Bluetooth speaker is on your shopping list, let me introduce you to the Marshall Kilburn II. A full charge will provide 20-hours of beats and they'll sound awesome out on the patio. Not as powerful as some Marshalls on the list but the Kilburn II still delivers a raucous performance.
Marshall's Uxbridge Voice incorporates either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant so you can stack up your tunes using the power of your voice. It's a powerful speaker too with a 30W amp and treble, bass and volume can also be tweaked on top of the unit itself. It's completely wireless, so bear that in mind too.
The Marshall Woburn III is Marshall's third generation speaker in this range - and it's a beast of a thing. It's a desktop device that's mains powered, so no outdoor fun. However, it delivers amazing, balanced audio and it's a hefty chunk of beautiful tech. We love it and think you will too.
The Marshall Stockwell II is a little smaller than the Kilburn II but it still sounds excellent with its 20W output - perfect for a smaller Bluetooth speaker. It's lightweight making it perfectly portable and you'll get 20-hours of music from a full charge. There's also a 3.5mm minijack port should you need it.
While the Marshall Tufton is classed as a portable speaker, it's not the lightest thing around and you'd be hard-pressed to really use this on the move. It's a sleek performer though, and I love the premium look - and more importantly, the audio is delivers has everything you'd expect from Marshall.
The Marshall Acton II might not have some of the bells and whistles of other models in the Marshall speaker range (there's no smart functions) but there's enough here to like making it ideal for those getting into the speaker game for the first time. Sound is powerful and its classic design makes it worth a look.
There's no shortage of portable Marshall speakers in our list, but we're giving a shout out to the Middleton because it's possible to connect multiple Middletons together for massive sound. It's dust and water resistant too and you'll get 20-hours of playback from a full charge.
Best portable Marshall
The Emberton II is the Sham 69 of portable speakers. It’s where Bluetooth meets bootboy Oi, and we reckon it's bloody brilliant. Barely a handful at 0.7kg, it generates so much energy, you’ll be left grinning as it stomps stomps through your playlists.
It may be small, but the soundstage is impressively wide, thanks to Marshall’s True Stereophonic multi-directional signal processing, and it rocks harder than its 2x 10W amplification might suggest, with the second generation model rocking a cheeky wee sub-woofer.
The original Marshall Emberton boasted a thoroughly decent 20-hour battery life from a full charge, but that's been raised to 30 hours in the funky newer model and it also rocks Bluetooth 5.1
The design is authentically iconic, and it’s extremely well finished (it’s a Red Dot Design winner for a reason), while an IP67 rating means you don’t need to sweat it in a downpour.
Best all-rounder
The Stanmore II sits in the middle of Marshall’s home speaker range, and is an almost the perfect mix of attitude and power.
Physically more imposing than the Acton II, weighing in at 4.6kg, it offers up all the classic Marshall design traits like textured vinyl wrap, grille fascia and classic logo. Up top are knobs for Volume, Bass and Treble.
It’s also the first Marshall in-door to offer Bluetooth aptX for higher quality playback. There’s also analogue connectivity if you want to hardwire a player. In addition to app control, there’s Multi-Host functionality for dual Bluetooth pairing.
The larger cabinet opens the doors to a more robust performance. 50W goes straight to the woofer, with 2x15W servicing the tweeters. The result is a suitably room-filling performance.
Louder tip: If you really want to get seismic, buy two Stanmore II’s and pair them in a stereo configuration. They won’t compete with the loudest Bluetooth speakers, but they’ll have a good go.
Best outdoor Marshall
The Marshall Kilburn 2 is a high powered portable designed to rock your patio BBQ. The rugged design, with flush-mounted shoulder bumpers and a carry handle fashioned after a guitar strap, inspires confidence.
There’s more than 20 hours of wireless listening to be had on a full charge, and you can get up to three hours playtime with just 20 minutes on the wall. The speaker is big enough (243 x 162 x 140 mm) to offer a decent stereo spread. Driving it along is 36W of amplification, with 20W for the woofer, and 2x8W for the tweeters.
Bluetooth is v5.0 with aptX, for the best possible wireless performance. Conveniently, if you want to hardwire a portable device, there’s a 3.5mm input too.
The Kilburn II has an IPX2 water resistant rating, so an inclement shower or two won’t phase it. It weighs a manageable 2.5kg.
Best desktop Marshall
The Uxbridge is the definitive modern Marshall Bluetooth speaker. Available for either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, it’s compact enough for desk and den use, and offers decent smart connectivity.
The speaker employs a 30W digital amp, but the presentation is unapologetically mono. While bass is limited, the midrange is rich enough for easy listening.
Hands-on controls are up top, with individual controls for bass, treble and volume. There’s no physical input connection option, so you’ll be restricted to wireless all the way.
In addition to Bluetooth 4.2 you can stream over Wi-Fi and there’s also support for Airplay 2 and Spotify Connect.
Best Marshall for power
The Woburn III is the latest in Marshall's much-loved home speaker series and this piece of powerful tech is well worth closer inspection if you're after a desktop speaker that really delivers punchy, face-melting audio.
It’s big and heavy - heavier even that the previous mode, weighing in at 9.18 kg (up from the Woburn II's 8.55kg ) and it takes no prisoners when the volume is cranked: Even when I had the volume at 4 out of a possible 10, the music filled the room with awesome clear and balanced audio.
The Woburn III has also received a Bluetooth upgrade - up from 5.0 to 5.2LE, while the plastic parts of the speaker are made from recycled materials and it's all wrapped in tactile vegan artificial leather.
Available in either black or cream, it rocks the classic Marshall amp look, and while the price tag is high, the room-filling balanced audio is amazing. The Woburn III is a Bluetooth speaker well worth your hard-earned cash,
Read our Marshall Woburn III review
Best mini Marshall
The Stockwell II is the little brother of the Kilburn II, mimicking its design but on a smaller scale (180 x 161 x 70 mm). It sports the same cool carry handle, and weighs just 1.4kg.
Build quality is excellent. The chassis has a silicone exterior with a steel metal grille, both of which contribute to its IPX4 water-resistant rating. There’s 20 hours of wireless playtime available. A 20 minute quick charge will get you 6 hours of music on the move .
Power output is rated at 20W (with 10W going to the woofer, and 2x5W aimed at the tweeters).
Bluetooth is v5.0. Multi-hosting means you can switch between two connected Bluetooth devices, which is a lot of fun if you want to get into a battle of the bands. There’s also a 3.5mm minijack to connect a local source.
Best premium
The Tufton is the headliner of Marshall’s portable line. Long and hefty at 4.9kg, with a guitar-strap carry handle, it’s not something you might easily tout about town, but with 20 hour battery life and IPX2 water resistance, it’s perfectly suited to a picnic on Hergest Ridge.
There’s some serious amplification onboard too, with 2x 15W going to a pair of full range drivers, and 10W for the tweeter. In addition to Bluetooth v5.0, there’s a 35mm line input.
Like its stablemates, the Tufton is rugged and well-built. It charges fast too. 20 minutes on the wall will give you four hours of playtime, and just 2.5 hours will fully replenish its Li-Ion battery. But the price is pretty off-putting.
Best entry level
The Action II is the smallest of Marshall’s all-in-one home speakers. There’s no smart functionality, but the Marshall look is spot on, completed by a trio of knobs up top for volume, bass and treble.
Despite its compact dimensions, there are three amp modules inside, driving a pair of tweeters (2x 15W) and a modestly-sized woofer (30W). It certainly has the firepower to make its presence known.
Bluetooth v5.0 is standard, but there’s also a line input for any 3.5mm analogue device. It’ll also work with Marshall’s app.
Best for stacking
While the portable Emberton has become Marshall’s biggest-selling Bluetooth speaker, there’s a new kid in town vying for your attention. The Marshall Middleton hit the market in early February 2023 and is a chunkier alternative to the Emberton.
You’ll still get 20 hours of playtime from a full charge, with the Middleton also offering Marshall’s True Stereophonic sound which will pump out your favourite tunes multi-directionally. The Middleton also carries a IP67 rating meaning it’s dust and water-resistant and a full charge will take four and a half hours.
But what we like most about the Marshall Middleton is its Stack Mode, which allows you to connect multiple Middletons together to create a fabulous wall of sound.
Buying advice
How to buy the best Marshall speaker for you
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If you’re buying a Marshall speaker, no matter the size, you’ll want to revel in the marque’s signature sound - that rough-edged tonality to guitars, the sense that you’re teetering on distortion when you really push the volume - and perhaps equally important, you’ll want to own that classic Marshall look.
Thankfully, you get all three, even on the smallest Marshall Bluetooth portable, the Emberton. Whichever speaker you go for, with such musicil heritage behind the name, you know it's going to be the ideal companion for your tunes.
Other things to consider
As ever, when buying a portable wireless speaker you should consider battery life. Longer playtime is better, but also consider how fast it charges - you don’t want to be waiting around forever to start cranking the tunes. Many modern speakers offer fast charging, whereby you can tease a good few hours out of your speaker with just 20 minutes plugged into the wall.
Build quality is key too. You’ll not want to fret it’ll fail over a mud-spattered festival weekend, so look out for the dust and water-proof rating to ensure it’s up to the job for you.
In addition to basic wireless connectivity, consider what physical inputs are on offer, so that you can hook up a physical source like one of the best phones for music.
Finally, when buying a Bluetooth all-in-one speaker as your main music system, our simple advice is to go large and heavy. Having the ability to move air in a meaningful way is always important.
Do you need a smart Marshall speaker?
If smart functionality appeals, opt for a Marshall with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant built in (admittedly the choice is currently quite limited) enabling you to control your music using your voice, as well as ask your speaker for things like news headlines, the weather and upcoming appointments.
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